Possible Earth Events

Tsunami & Tidal Waves

Tsunami & Tidal Waves: From the previous topics on the potential for a “magnetic” pole shift, a “geographic” pole shift and the resulting shift in Earth’s crust, you can see that our oceans may present the greatest threat of natural disaster to all forms of life. The extent of this potential is even visible now as floods, tsunamis, and torrential rains cause the majority of fatalities from natural disaster around the world.

We’ve discussed the potential for a geological cataclysmic event from either type of pole shift as Earth’s crust moves across the magma until settling into a new state of equilibrium. Now let’s discuss the difference between the motions of Earth’s crust versus the motion of the oceans during such an event.

To do this, we must first consider the difference between the rigidity of a shift in Earth’s crust and the fluidity of its oceans. Dirt is more dense than water and does not flow as freely unless it is either saturated with water or a large enough force is applied that creates substantial momentum. A landslide is an example of how earth moves under extreme conditions. A landslide can only occur if one or more conditions are met including: steep incline, weak substructure, moisture, and the application of vertical or horizontal forces. If any one of these conditions is large enough, a landslide is possible, but is still much more limited in the distance it can travel than with water. In fact, due to the friction created as earth moves across earth, the distance of motion is extremely limited without a continuous application of force.

Water, on the other hand, moves freely when force is applied. In fact, even the slightest disturbance of water creates motion and the only conditions you need to create this motion include: displacement, vertical, or horizontal forces. Motion of water can be created from a variety of sources including: changes in altitude such as a river, wind blowing across its surface, or the gravitation forces from the Moon. And once water begins to move it continues until enough energy is removed over time to slow or stop the motion. In the case of a lake or ocean, this means that waves can literally move from one shore to the other, and back again.

Approximately 70% of Earth’s surface is covered by water. Of course, 100% of Earth is covered by land; it’s just that only 30% of that land is above the water. As we discussed earlier, when Earth’s crust moves violently, it’s generally a short period of time before it settles into a new state of equilibrium. Good examples of this concept are earthquakes. Earthquakes can be very violent, but generally occur for only short durations with recordings generally only in the few seconds, but in extreme cases up to about 10 minutes.

The fluidity of water is what makes it so devastating. Once water starts moving, it doesn’t just stop until it generally hits something. It may slow down gradually, but it literally keeps moving across lakes and even oceans until it reaches a shoreline. And it doesn’t simply stop when it hits shore, but actually bounces off the shoreline, losing some of its momentum in the process, and starts back in the direction it came from. The cataclysm affects from these waves will probably last for weeks or months as these waves circle the globe before dissipating completely.

We have already mentioned the geological proof that mountain ranges across the world have risen or fallen 3,000 to 8,000 meters in a single event. During this same event, most of the life on Earth was eradicated from Earth in what can only be described as cataclysmic events. Archeologist and geologists found mass debris piles that contained a combination of vegetation and animal parts. They found no whole animals or whole trees, but only pieces strewn together in huge piles. It was as if the organic material was stripped from the land, shredded, moved inland into large piles, and buried under the dirt. These debris piles were excavated and carbon dated to the same time as the abrupt geological movements. What wasn’t mentioned previously is that water was proven to be the cause of this eradication of life.

If you’ve seen any of before and after photographs from typhoons, hurricanes, or the tsunami in 2004, you may have an idea of the true destructive power of water. The tsunami was caused by an earthquake with an epicenter off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. With a magnitude of between 9.1 and 9.3, it’s the second largest earthquake ever recorded on a seismograph. This earthquake had the longest duration of faulting ever observed, between 8.3 and 10 minutes. It caused the entire planet to vibrate as much as 1 cm (0.4 inches) and triggered other earthquakes as far away as Alaska.

The earthquake was caused by subduction and triggered a series of devastating tsunami along the coasts of most landmasses bordering the Indian Ocean and killing more than 225,000 people in eleven countries. Coastal communities were inundated with waves up to 30 meters (100 feet) high. It was one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history. Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand were the hardest hit.

The following before and after photographs from the 2004 tsunami provide just a glimpse of the destructive power of only a 10 to 30 meter high tsunami.

The reality is that water will cause the greatest destruction from either a “geographic” or “magnetic” pole shift. The potential movements of Earth’s crust, the massive earthquakes that will result, and the displacement of entire oceans will most certainly create a cataclysm beyond human comprehension. It really doesn’t mater if the crust shifts in the East/West or North/South directions or whether it’s from a sudden slow down or sudden acceleration of Earth’s rotation. The result will likely be very similar in either case.

Tsunami and tidal waves are ultimately very similar since they are both large waves that move across the water surface, however, how they are formed is quite different. The term “tidal wave” invariably describes exactly how this phenomenon is created. They are literally “waves” that are created when there is a change in “tidal” conditions, or the periodic movement of water associated with the rise and fall of the tides. It’s known that tidal waves can move at speeds up to 200 MPH and can be up to 100 meters high.

Below is a video that describes the concept of a tidal wave and illustrates their awesome power even on a small scale.

Tsunami, a Japanese word meaning “harbor wave,” is a wave that’s created by a geologic event. Often a tsunami is incorrectly referred to as a tidal wave. Oceanographers call tsunamis seismic sea waves because they are usually caused by earthquakes, landslides or marine slides under or near the ocean. These events push the water upward, sideways or downward to create the tsunami waves. Volcanic eruptions can also cause tsunamis.

A tsunami is not a single wave, but a series of waves that can travel across the ocean at speeds of more than 500 MPH. In the deep ocean, hundreds of miles can separate wave crests; many people have lost their lives during tsunamis after returning home thinking the waves had stopped.

As the tsunami enters the shallows of a coastline, its velocity slows but its height increases. A tsunami that is just a few centimeters or meters high from trough to crest can rear up to heights of 30 to 50 meters as it hits the shore, striking with devastating force. For those on shore there is little warning of a tsunami’s approach. The first indication is often a sharp swell, not unlike an ordinary storm swell.

There are several historic examples of tsunami destructive power. In 1883, a tsunami following the eruption of Krakatoa volcano between the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra killed 36,000 people. The tsunami’s passage was traced as far away as Panama. In July 1998, two undersea earthquakes measuring 7.0 created three tsunamis that killed at least 2,100 people near the town of Aitape on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. And we’re all familiar with the December 26, 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killing more than 225,000 people in eleven countries including Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand.

Here are a couple videos that describe how a tsunami is created and include actual footage from the December 26, 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean.

Our overall concepts of tidal waves and tsunami pale in comparison to the true magnitude of these events under extreme circumstances. Even the earthquake that triggered the tsunami in 2004 lasted for a long period of time in geological terms, but it was still only for a period of 8 to 10 minutes. Can you imagine how long an earthquake might last under the conditions of a shift in Earth’s crust from either a “magnetic” pole shift or a “geographic” pole shift? Can anyone imagine an earthquake of the previously described magnitudes that last for 30 minutes, 2 hours, or maybe 5 hours? These figures are probably unimaginable even for scientists and geologists.

Some scientists state that water doesn’t have the elasticity to create a 900 meter tidal wave or a 300 meter tsunami, but imagine if we were simply talking about a comet or meteor striking in one of Earth’s oceans. Couldn’t such an event displace enough water during the impact to create waves of this magnitude? The reality is that just because we haven’t ever seen it happen doesn’t mean there isn’t a force powerful enough that can create these conditions. And just because scientists can’t prove something will happen doesn’t mean that it can’t happen. There are obviously forces in the universe that are beyond our comprehension to measure or even understand.

Another form of the geological proof is the existence of erratics. An erratic is a large boulder, sometimes the size of a house, which has been moved from one area to another area far away. Such erratics have been discovered throughout the world. Originally, geologists concluded they must have been moved by the force of ice during the last ice age. More recent research proves these erratics were moved with the force of water, discarding the previous glacial theories. This research has concluded these erratics were pushed up against mountains or pushed over the top by the force of water.

The force of water that we’re speaking about is probably beyond our comprehension to even imagine. We’re talking about a force that can wipe the Earth clean of all trees, rocks, and organic life for hundreds of kilometers inland. The coastal regions of virtually every continent and island will be inundated with the water moving at extreme speeds. Even high altitudes may not be safe if you are close to any ocean shoreline. A 900 meter tidal wave or 300 meter tsunami, traveling at speeds in excess of 200mph will embody a force that can literally move straight up the face of a mountain.

Add to this data, tales from virtually every culture of great floods that destroyed entire civilizations. There are cities submerged under every ocean on the planet. So, when did this happen? Did you know there are over 200 cities under the Mediterranean Sea alone? Then you have the repetitive patterns of land masses being submerged under the ocean only to have these same land masses re-emerge from that ocean at some other point in history. Among many places, this is evident in the Western United States and the creation of the Grand Canyon.

Ancient cultures also speak of a time when the oceans receded away from the shorelines. This phenomenon can occur as a tsunami or tidal wave approaches the shoreline. The water is actually sucked out and away from the shoreline as the tsunami or tidal wave is pushed upwards when moving towards the shore. When the ancients witnessed these events, they immediately ran towards higher ground, however, most people could not get far enough inland or high enough up during such an event in order to save them.

When Columbus came to the Americas in 1492, he visited the Caribbean islands. Columbus wrote that virtually every island culture had recorded a time of a great flood or deluge that left few alive. At that time, the inhabitants were tribal communities living along the shoreline where they could reap the ocean’s abundant natural resources. These shoreline locations would have put their communities at the highest risk of ocean and weather related disasters.

If this theme of destruction by water was only associated with the Caribbean, you could hypothesis these destructive events were merely isolated tsunami or hurricanes, but this theme is resounded throughout virtually every ancient civilization on Earth. With such a globally recorded event, it’s more likely these were not just localized events, but rather a global event.

Let’s not forget about our man-made water sheds throughout the world. These would include every reservoir, levy, and dam ever built for storage and distribution of fresh water and those used for flood control. In such an event, every one of these man-made structures would likely fail or collapse. Most of these structures are also in close proximity and often at a higher elevation to the populated areas they service. So, besides the destruction that would be caused by every ocean in the world, we also have the devastating affects of lakes, reservoirs, levies, and dams that would flood local cities, towns, and communities. A prime example of such flooding is when the levies broke around New Orleans from hurricane Katrina in August of 2005.